step by step
by frozen.raspberry
Summary: collection of drabbles/short fics from my tumblr, including requests. mostly endou/aphrodi/gouenji, tags will be added with more chapters
1. Chapter 1

Endou's fidgeting. Endou has been fidgeting for 30 minutes straight at this point. If Gouenji didn't have the patience of a saint, he would have made the goalkeeper wait outside of the terminal. Probably? Probably not, Gouenji realizes. After all, the fidgeting is because of excitement, and that would be mean, plain and simple.

He resigns himself to staring at the clock as a distraction. It's almost nine o'clock at night at this point, which mean's Aphrodi's flight would have come in about ten minutes before… Taking into account baggage claims, and customs, Gouenji does some math in his head – it will probably be another ten before he walks out.

"Endou, let's sit," he says suddenly, grabbing the brunet's hand and tugging him over to the nearest bench. It doesn't completely stop the fidgeting, but the goalkeeper seems to make a bit more of an effort to avoid bugging Gouenji – he may be restless, but he can still tell when Gouenji's nerves are being worn thin. It would be a bit more concerning if he _wasn't _able to tell that. At this point, they've been together how long? Gouenji smiles when he tries to remember, it's been at least a year.

And the two of them have been with Aphrodi for at least 4 months now, though it seems like it's been much longer than that. Maybe it's because he's been gone for so much of that time, or maybe they've just been so busy – who knows? The time while he's been in Korea after the FFI has gone by slowly, almost painfully. They saw him after the match with Fire Dragon, but he's been staying in Korea since then, and it's been a bizarre feeling. Wrong, almost. But it's not something worth bothering about right now, Gouenji thinks, he's on his way right now. He reaches over and grabs Endou's hand, folding their fingers together, without even looking away from the clock.

It's a decision he regrets almost immediately, as less than 10 seconds later Endou practically _flies _off the bench. Gouenji, still holding on, is unwittingly dragged off too, but he lets go just in time to regain his balance and avoid a collision with the tiled floor.

"Aphrodi!" Endou calls, still running towards the blond. Aphrodi looks around, a tired expression on his face, but he can't seem to place where Endou's calling from amidst so many people, all in a hurry to get where they're going. Gouenji nearly calls out to tell him to stop, but he's too late – Endou gets to Aphrodi before the blond even figures out the direction he's coming from.

And before he even has a chance to react, Endou's hands are around Aphrodi's waist, his bags are on the floor, and Endou isn't just hugging him, he's _spinning _Aphrodi around.

"H-hey!" he manages to stutter, but then his feet aren't even touching the floor anymore, and he doesn't even bother trying to argue with Endou. People are staring, but Gouenji doesn't notice them. He just sighs at stares at his boyfriends with a fond smile, and when Aphrodi catches his eye for a second during the last spin (even Endou has limited stamina), a smile creeps onto his face too.

The moment Endou puts him down, Aphrodi leans over and kisses him, then in the same motion, picks up one of his bags and pushes it into the goalkeeper's arms. Although the smile doesn't change, Gouenji can't help but laughing when he catches a bit of what Aphrodi says.

"_That's_ for embarrassing me in public."


	2. Chapter 2

"What, did you get us mixed up or something?" Aphrodi asks with a sly smile, and Endou laughs but no, he didn't, he __couldn't __get them mixed up.

For all the things that fly over his head, the differences between Aphrodi and Gouenji are so ingrained in his consciousness it would take a__thousand__ soccer balls to his skull to knock them out.

Gouenji is sharper, he's less smooth. He smells like warmth, of smoke and some spice. His shoulders are a little bony, but not so much that it hurts to hold him or rest against his neck. His movements are clean and pointed, no unnecessary flourishes. When he lets his hair down, it's thicker than it seems when all spiked up, and it's soft, though a bit rough on the ends because of the wear of the styling. When he holds Endou's hand his grip is firm, though not painful, and his kisses are like sparks coming out of a fireplace. He's naturally an early riser, and though he's not very poetic, the way he lights up when he sees a sunrise makes even __Endou __want to get up a little earlier to see them too.

Aphrodi is softer, though not weak in the least. He's thin, but muscular and toned, and when he moves it's all grace and elegance and like water rippling. Sometimes, on bad days, his touch is hesitant, but when Endou gives his hand a reassuring squeeze he'll return it just as firmly. His hair is soft from hours of care across years of growing it out, and it smells sweet and bitter and above all that, like fresh air. When Endou or Gouenji kiss him, he always flushes a bit, no matter if it's just a peck or a deeper one. He's happiest when he's holding both of their hands, and the curve of skin between and below his shoulder blades is so sensitive from sprouting his wings he shudders (almost unnoticeably to anyone besides them) at a single touch.

They're so different, and nuanced in ways that anyone who hasn't spent hours upon hours with them wouldn't be able to pick out. Like the way that Aphrodi only hums when he thinks no one's listening, and how Gouenji's left eye – and __only __his left eye – twitches a bit when he's really angry. And he loves both of them so, __so__ much, it makes his chest hurt thinking about it, and it amazes him how two people can be so different and yet so perfect at the same time.

Aphrodi's still looking at him, waiting for a response to his remark with an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah," Endou laughs. "Something like that."


End file.
